State trooper struck by vehicle on I-94 in suburbs

An Illinois state trooper was struck by a vehicle Tuesday morning on Interstate 94 near northwest suburban Des Plaines.

About 11:15 a.m., the trooper turned on his emergency lights before helping a driver who was stopped on the left shoulder of northbound I-94 near Touhy Avenue, according to Illinois State Police. Another driver then veered onto the shoulder and crashed into the officer from behind.

The trooper suffered injuries that weren’t life-threatening, state police said. He was treated and released from a hospital.

The driver who hit him was cited for improper lane usage, failure to reduce speed to avoid a collision and violations of Scott’s Law, which “requires vehicles to slow down, move over and change lanes if possible, when they are approaching an emergency vehicle, or any vehicle with its hazard lights activated,” state police said.

The driver wasn’t hurt, state police said.

In January, Trooper Christopher Lambert was fatally struck by a vehicle while reporting a pair of crashes on the Tri-State Tollway near Glenview.